Settling

Santiago Gutierrez Rey

 Santiago arrived in Stoke-on-Trent in 2016, when he was 7 years old. “At first, it was a bit of a culture shock, in Mexico, everyone was really open and friendly, but in the UK, it was difficult, because people are a bit more reserved, a bit colder.”.

Santiago’s parents travelled to the UK to do a one-year training course in London, but there was significant unrest back in Mexico. In 2016, Mexico’s drug wars claimed 23,000 lives (the second deadliest conflict of any country in the world that year [1]), including political assassinations. Santiago’s dad, Emilio, worked as a politician, so after much deliberation and prayer, they decided it was not safe to return. “In the end, we decided to stay in England”. After living in Reading and Birmingham, the family were moved to Stoke-on-Trent.

Santiago remembers the family arriving in Stoke just before Christmas, “We literally spent it alone, as a family. So, it was like, yeah, we've got a house now, and we spent Christmas nicely, but it did feel lonely because we didn't know absolutely anyone.”. Local people have been incredibly welcoming, though: “I think there are so many people in Stoke that have just such big hearts that are willing to literally do so many things to help you, to support you.”

The short daylight hours and new culture made it difficult at first, but Santiago was enjoying school, “When I started school, I was bringing about all the joy, because everyone's like, oh, this guy from Mexico, he's always really happy.”. Secondary school was more of a challenge, “But as I got to high school, I think a bit of my confidence went down.” He continues, “This culture shock started to hit even more because I felt like I couldn't be myself. So, I started trying to fit in and do things that weren’t really me.”

After 6 years, the family were finally granted leave to remain. They briefly visited Mexico to see family, which had a real impact on Santiago, “In Mexico, a lot of people my age, they're really limited for opportunities, so a big highlight of what I love here is the opportunities you get, to get ahead in life.”

Santiago has put this determination to succeed into sport, music and his academic work, winning his school’s JCB Learner of the Year award, Parker Sales UK Pre-16 Scientist of the Year, IMechE Excellence in Engineering, Stoke City Runner-up Business Learner of the Year amongst others. He also loves music, “I play the piano, I play the guitar, I play the drums. I love to sing. I write songs. My dad’s a music producer, so we’ve started to record music together.”. He has just begun his A-levels with the goal of working in the business sector once he’s completed his studies.

He attributes his achievements to self-acceptance: “I wouldn't spend too much time trying to look good, or to be someone else, I would just say be yourself.” Santiago explains, “Because whenever you're yourself, literally, everything just goes better. There's no better way for things to flow.” He continues, “Take the mask off and take the opportunities that you have, especially here in Stoke and here in England.”

[1] https://edition.cnn.com/2017/05/09/americas/mexico-second-deadliest-conflict-2016